240zip

I purchased a SDS for a L28 turbo swap into my 240Z. I have the SDS, the complete engine and a T5 ready to go.

one more item. We used MSA headers and their exhaust system as a starting point. The headers were a 6 into 2 into 1 design and ceramic coated. We added a small resonator to the MSA exhaust near the end. Perhaps not an ideal location, but wanted to keep clearance high. We also added a flex joint. I think the stainless flex joint was a good idea and I recommend it for others as it's not a very expensive upgrade. the sound is good and I like the look While I like the JDM dual tip mufflers, the MSA system is very cost effective and has a nice sound. I've heard them without a resonator and the one on mine is more quiet. It's a matter of personal taste, but for me it has an Italian sound.

I personally thought the costs were reasonable. It's not uncommon for people to spend $15K to $20K to do a complete restoration. Mine was WAY LESS. For me it's a matter of time. Between work, my kids, and other hobbies, I don't have the time. Second is skill. While it's true I could go and learn to weld, buy things like a TIG welder, frame jig, and other items to fabricate parts, it didn't seem that economical. Not to mention having that stuff around small kids. I did four other restorations myself. In one case I did the body work and paint. I was never happy with how it turned out. I don't mind turning a wrench and I always work in partnership with the people who do work on my cars. My goal was a no excuse 240Z that I could drive to meets, shows (perhaps), and on weekend runs in the mountains. The choices for engine, transmission, suspension, and upgrades were all based on a streetable car that was close to period-correct. The MSD and Pertronix were my nod to modern electronics, but make starting the car much easier. The interior is all original with NOS factory door panels, AM/FM radio, and other goodies. I was tempted to get one of the factory restorations and frankly I'm glad I didn't. Aside from the price, which wasn't that bad, I would have felt horrible putting in an updated engine, transmission, suspension, and other items. Personally I love vintage Italian cars. Especially the sound of the Webers on say a 330GT. The carbs and fuel filter I used for the 240Z are correct to a Maserati 3500GT. They made extra and some ended up on Z cars in the 1970s. My justification for all this is that you can have a beautiful restored Z car that will likely hold most of its value for less than the price of a late model Honda.

I added some pics of the rust repair on mine (scroll down) http://forums.hybridz.org/index.php/topic/96860-update-on-240z-restoration/ We drilled out the spot welds, removed rusted pieces, fabricated new pieces, and the put it back together. We used repair patch panels for pieces we couldn't fabricate. From your description, it seems your rust is more extensive and pieces to replace them will be more difficult to find. Ryan, the person who did my work, simply enjoys using the TIG set-up in the shop. If you were out in Colorado, I'd recommend him.

As mentioned earlier we had to deal with rust issues on the car. It wasn't that bad, but I wanted it fixed right. Again, hats off to Ronin LTD in Colorado on the fabrication work, welding, and paint. In every case the pieces were drilled out, repair pieces were either purchased or fabricated, then welded back as factory. We were fortunately that I had many spares and parts cars to select from. We used part of a rocker here as the rest of the metal was fine ... both sides were rusted in a similar way, rather than patch we cut away all the bad metal, welding in the new piece, and then primed it. Perhaps an overkill as it's under the fender, what again, why not do it right. The results after primer

simple question ... why a stroker 3.1L turbo instead of a 'built' 2.8 turbo motor (e.g. forged pistons and such)? it seems you could have got 300 RWHP from a 2.8L turbo build-up. I suspect the 3.1L set-up would be a better street driving car with higher low-end torque and power.

This is the machined profile for my flywheel Various machine shops will use different profiles for making the flywheel lighter.

well, I started with what I thought was a decent starting point and it still was a year long endeavor ... http://forums.hybridz.org/index.php/topic/96860-update-on-240z-restoration/ see the second post for the before ....

I read your thread. Because it's a series 1 and fairly complete, I'd personally restore it. I've seen far worse ones fixed. I seems you'll need to media blast the thing and then start welding away ...

To get an idea of how much work this all entailed, you need to see some before and during pictures. When we got the car it looked OK. But there was some damage to the front and poor welding job. You have to look closely at the photo to see them. We decided to remove part of the front clip and simply replace that clip with a rust-free one we had at the shop. It was lucky we had a near perfect front clip. My fabricator at Ronin LTD drilled out the spot welds and did a nice job of putting it back together. Everything was fixed, then undercoated, and then primed for paint the engine paint was poor, so we simply re-did it and replaced all the rubber on the firewall.

801-E4100 WEATHERSTRIP-RH 802-E4100 WEATHERSTRIP-LH That's for the seals ... anyone have the #'s for the welting?

on the shipping costs ... they will also charge you about another $45 for customs handling fees. Total cost for shipping and customs fees came to $120 plus the cost of the door panels (nearly $500 USD). You can get the passenger side from the US. H0900-E4100 is 136.58 + shipping. So the cheapest route would be to get the driver's door from Canada and the passenger door from a US dealer or via an on-line discounter I also got an OEM tail light from Fishcreek. Not sure if it was the last one or not.

nice build-up. If you've got the means, I see no issue with getting a built car. Seems it was just a starting point. Post some video footage of the car some time.

I picked up a 240Z last year in hopes of a quick restoration and getting the car on the road. As we all know these quick restorations often turn into multi-year projects. Fortunately this one only lasted about a year. The engine is a 2.8L with an E31 head, MSA ceramic coated headers, 42DCOE webers, MSD 6AL, Pertronix, and Filter King filter and regulator. The engine was rebuilt using quality components like ARP bolts and such. The extra regulator was removed and replaced with a gauge for monitoring pressure (which sits at 2.5 psi). We completely re-did the suspension. We went with Tokico 5-way Illumina shocks, HD linear rate springs (about 1/2" from stock), ST sway bar in front and rear. All new bolts, bushings, and powdercoated pieces. Every wear part was replaced. We used John Coffey's WRX STi adapters and a 3.9 STi R180 LSD unit. I'm very pleased with that. We matched the LSD to a rebuild 5 speed. Shift points are good, very easy to pull off the line, no stalling or any issues. We used a machined flywheel (about 15.5lbs), Toyota 4x4 brakes, rebuilt steering rack, alternator upgrade, and re-wrapped the electricals. I've done four 240Z and two 280Z. This is by far the one I like the most. The ride is compliant ... meaning it feels firm, but doesn't cause my fillings to drop out. The tires were from the previous owner and will likely be replaced. They're T-rated, 60 series rubber. Right now they're fine for crusin' around. The next step in the project is the interior. Again the goal is close to a factory appearance. I'm very very pleased with the rebuild on the 42DOE Webers from Rex Chalmers. Anyway ... just wanted to share. I've asked a ton of questions over the last year and this group has been very helpful. Thanks to all who helped along the way.

my only concern was it wasn't stainless, so I got a stainless one from Scottie GNZ. A little bit more. I wish they were still made. The flanges are easy to source, you would just need to add a bung for the O2 and bend the pipe and TIG the flanges and bung on.

it's just the fan

very impressive. Honestly, I've parted out cars in better shape so now I feel bad.

there are a number of issues in going with a very light weight flywheel. http://www.upgrademotoring.com/performance/jun/ltflywheel.htm JUN makes nice flywheels. I've never used one on a Datsun, but like their quality for my WRX. I strongly recommend that before your buy one, try it on someone's car if possible. For normal street and most competitive driving, a lightened steel flywheel is fine. For a turbo set-up and drag racing applications - by all means go with a stage 4 clutch and a light weight flywheel and have fun.

I've had good luck with these people ... $160 plus return shipping ... so $25 to ship to them, and $185 back ... $210. http://www.racetep.com/flywheel.html It's important to machine and balance. I have a lightened flywheel on my NA 2.8L build-up (25 lbs. stock / 16 lbs. after) and it's really nice. I'm glad I didn't go with one of those aluminum ones. You really get hit with shipping. If you can find someone local, that's a cheaper way to go.

we're looking at ones from JEGS and perhaps some custom modification of the JEGS shroud with our TIG

On my engine with an after market aluminum radiator, we noticed that with the fan clutch, the plastic fan actually bows forward about 3/4" which is just enough to touch the fins at 7000 RPM. The option we're looking at is to swap the OEM fan and fan clutch with an after market low profile fan. This is our first option and is being done as the 'low cost option'. It seems the best option is to go with an electric fan and shroud with a temperature switch. The pictures aren't great, but you get the idea. It was a fairly stock set-up (mounts, engine, etc). Has anyone else had this problem of fan flex?

There was a thread about whine from the R180 STi differential. I just want to say I did the swap using John's adapters and there has been no noise coming from our STi 3.90 R180. We've been doing a number of 'shake-down' runs on the car without any issues. Very solid feel with the LSD.

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